Glass laminate structures can be used as windows and glazing in architectural and transportation applications, including automobiles, rolling stock, locomotives and airplanes. Glass laminate structures can also be used as glass panels in balustrades and stairs, and as decorative panels or coverings for walls, columns, elevator cabs, kitchen appliances and other applications. As used herein, a glazing or a laminated glass structure can be a transparent, semi-transparent, translucent or opaque part of a window, panel, wall, enclosure, sign or other structure. Common types of glazings that are used in architectural and/or vehicular applications can include clear and tinted glass laminate structures.
Conventionally, to form a pattern in a sheet of glass it is necessary to heat the glass above the softening point of the glass while impressing the sheet with a form or other tooling. Upon cooling, the glass retains the imparted shape or embossed surface pattern. While this hot-forming process can be an effective method of inducing shape change to a sheet of glass, the method generally requires high temperatures, typically greater than 600° C., and a large energy input. These high temperatures, however, can affect the characteristics of the glass, and the large energy inputs required of such processes can adversely affect the cost of production.
Furthermore, in instances when the glass utilized is thin, it can be difficult to prevent optical distortions in the resulting glass laminate structures due to the flexibility of the thin glass. Thus, there is a need in the industry to form patterns at lower temperatures to provide lower production costs and provide higher quality glass laminate structures.